Assessing releases of mercury from small-scale gold mining sites in Ghana

The small-scale gold mining sector has been and continues to be identified as a major source of mercury contamination. Although many studies have assessed the human and ecological health impacts of mercury emissions in the vicinity of small-scale mining operations, only a handful have surveyed the source of the contamination: the sites themselves. This paper reports findings from an environmental analysis undertaken directly within three small-scale gold mining sites in Ghana. Using targeted soil and water sampling analysed through mass spectrometry, the findings are compared with findings in the literature and safety guidelines to gauge the scale of contamination at surveyed sites. The analysis reveals that there is widespread pollution, often several orders higher than background levels. Expanding upon this, the results are extrapolated to provide estimates for mercury emissions accountable to the artisanal mining sector for Ghana as a whole.